INDIANAPOLIS (August 13, 2014) – Today, Lynn A. Simon of Newburgh, Indiana pled guilty to running a Ponzi scheme that swindled four investors out of $100,000. Simon offered his victims the opportunity to invest in his “special company” and promised a high rate of return. Instead of investing the money as promised, Simon used the money for his own personal gain. He solicited clients through his company Financial Security Planning, Inc., but over the past 25 years, Simon had earned most of his victims’ trust by serving as their insurance agent and investment advisor. He operated two Evansville companies: The Insurance Shoppe and Financial Security Planning.

“Simon like all scam artist, only thought about himself and had no regard for how his actions would affect his client’s ability to retire,” said Secretary Lawson. “Investors can protect themselves from falling victims to these scams by checking with my office to ensure the financial professional and their products are registered. If one of Simon’s investors would have called to see if his product was registered it would have crumbled his whole scheme. Unregistered products are a key warning sign that the investment is a scam.”

The investigation began when Simon went missing from the state in April of 2013. Investors started reporting to the Secretary of State’s office they were no longer receiving interest payments on their investments. After Simon left the state, authorities traced his whereabouts to Alabama and then later to New Mexico. He continued to roam free, while authorities sought to serve the arrest warrant until he submitted to the authority of the court, just as the Secret Service and local police zeroed in on his location.

“Simon wasn’t the flashy big spender most people would envision as a scam artist,” said Securities Commissioner Carol Mihalik. “His investors thought he was just an average guy and were shocked when they found out he had been stealing their money. This case is a reminder that you can’t tell who’s a fraudster just by looking, you must always do your research before investing.”

Simon pled guilty to a Class C felony securities fraud charge, a Class C felony for the sale of unregistered securities and two Class B felonies for committing securities fraud to victims over the age of 60. Simon will be sentenced on October 2, 2014.

Diana Moers Davis and Kimberly Haskett handled the investigation and criminal referral of this case on behalf of the Prosecution Assistance Unit of the Secretary of State’s office. They worked closely with Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Nicholas Hermann’s office.

For information on how to avoid becoming a victim of investment fraud visit www.in.gov/sos.

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